As they are the oldest team in professional hockey, the Montreal Canadiens are perfect for our first logo history. Such a long history will inevitably lead to numerous logo revisions, and the Canadiens are no exception.

The one thing constant for nearly all designs is the big “C” and I bet you know what that stands for. But the “A” in some, and the “H” in others may not be as obvious. The”A” comes from a time when the organization was known as “Club Athlétique Canadien,” which was changed to “Club de Hockey Canadien,” and hence the “H” is added in 1917.

Overall, I like the modern version, implemented in 1956… probably because it’s what I’ve always known. I do love the childish style on the 1917 logo, and the Canadiens meet The Simpsons / Matt Groening style of the 1926 edition… If Homer wore a Canadiens jersey, the logo would look like that.

Hey David, thanks for posting. I had another look online and it things look more complicated.

According to the Canadiens’ website (added the link in the post):

The first CH logo stands for “Canadien Hockey Club.” (That might actually make the logo CHC, as some say that the outline of the C is in fact a second C.)

The C in the first CA logo stood for “Canadian.”

As for the very first C logo, I cannot find any info. Being a single C, I can’t believe it would stand for “Club” as that would be very generic. They played against other hockey clubs, what if they all had C logos?